Goosefoot Community Fund Announces Grant Awards to South Whidbey Non-Profits

LANGLEY, Whidbey Island, WA (December 15, 2017) – Goosefoot is pleased to award $87,856 in grants to 10 local non-profits working on behalf of the South Whidbey community. This is Goosefoot's first official grant cycle after deciding to formalize its charitable giving in early 2017. It is also the organization's first major accomplishment after adding representatives from four local non-profits to its board of directors: South Whidbey at Home, Whidbey Camano Land Trust, Whidbey Island Nourishes, and Whidbey Watershed Stewards.

"It was Goosefoot's intention when the Goose Community Grocer opened in 2009 that available profits would go directly back into our local community," according to Goosefoot's board president Nadine Zackrisson. After spending the last three years making substantial grants on an informal basis, the Goosefoot board of directors decided to open up their charitable giving to a broader audience in February of this year. "With profits continuing to grow, our board enthusiastically took up the work of establishing funding priorities and grant guidelines to give more structure to our charitable giving process," Zackrisson explains.

Goosefoot awarded $87,856 to the following organizations:

Bayview Community Hall to use towards necessary repairs and maintenance, which includes painting the building.

Clinton Community Hall for a power generator to provide a reliably warm place during power outages.

Coupeville Farm to School to support the current farm-to-school program at Coupeville Elementary, and expand it to the middle & high schools.

Friends of Friends for assistance with dental costs to those struggling to meet dental expenses.

Good Cheer to increase harvest and storage of produce at the Big Acre, which serves food bank clients and South Whidbey School District students.

Helping Hand to assist South Whidbey residents who are facing a dramatic increase in their rent.

Mobile Turkey Unit for turkeys to deliver on Thanksgiving Day.

Sound Water Stewards to expand volunteer training and citizen science efforts across South Whidbey.

“Goosefoot was built on the idea that a thriving South Whidbey takes each of us working together,” said executive director Sandra Whiting. “Shoppers at the Goose Grocer are directly responsible for making this community grant program possible. In turn, the organizations receiving these grants will invest that money right back into making South Whidbey a healthier, more resilient community in which to live."

Dates for Goosefoot's 2018 grant cycle will be available after the New Year. Information about Goosefoot's 2017 grant program can be found on its website: www.goosefoot.org.

Goosefoot is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to build a sense of place and community, preserve rural traditions, enhance local commerce, and help create a healthy, sustainable future for South Whidbey Island.

Located in the Bayview neighborhood of South Whidbey Island, WA since 1999, Goosefoot has developed several pieces of property with the interests of the local community in mind. Projects include the Bayview Cash Store, the Sears House, and the Goose Community Grocer.

Goosefoot, as the non-profit owner of the Goose Grocer, established this year a formal grant program to distribute available profits from the store to other charitable organizations whose programs benefit the South Whidbey community.

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